Alabama

Falcons expect Ryan to be new face of franchise

Two seasons ago, there were expectations of the Falcons playing in the Super Bowl. Entering last season, there were expectations of a competitive team with a barnstorming offense led by quarterback Michael Vick and ring-leading coach Bobby Petrino.

Now, no one knows what to expect.

Team owner Arthur Blank, whose trust was violated as badly as his football product and season ticket coffers with the Vick-Petrino debacle in 2007, has charted a course into the unknown. He hired a first-time general manager (Thomas Dimitroff), a first-time coach (Mike Smith) and signed off on ridding the roster of nearly everybody and anything that reminded him of last season.